Issue 64 - Shaking it up

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Shaking it up

There is a revolution happening and whisky is at the cutting edge. We find out more

The revival of the cocktail scene has really taken hold in the trendy bars and clubs across the world, and whisky and bourbon have fast become the premier ingredient for many bartenders – or mixologists as they are known.

A cocktail is essentially a mix of two or more ingredients, one of which must be alcohol.

The list is endless as to what you can add, it all depends on what flavours you are trying to enhance and highlight. Other ingredients can include fruit juice or soda, other spirits, honey, milk, cream, herbs and spices.

Experimentation is the name of the game these days and if you can think of something to add to a drink, chances are someone has already tried it.

Whisky cocktails have a long history but perhaps more so with bourbon than Scotch whisky. It is well accepted that in the early days of whisky production other ingredients were used to mask the foul flavours of the spirit, and during the Prohibition era cocktails were popular as they eased the nasty flavours of bath tub gin and moonshine.

Bourbon better lends itself to mixing because of the sweeter notes whereas Scotch whisky, whether single malt or blended, is typically difficult to mix well.

Blends and bourbons generally marry well with orange zest, summer fruits and warming spices, bourbon can also be mixed with vanilla pods to bring out its vanilla character.

The single malt is a relative newcomer to the scene but is not being shied away from by bartenders in the know.